French people back intervention in Mali

Poll shows majority of French citizens back the military's fight against insurgencies in Mali.

A French army soldier patrols down the Champs Elysee on Jan. 15. Security in Paris has been tightened as France's military moves to push back al-Qaeda-linked insurgents in Mali.(Photo: Remy de la Mauviniere, AP)

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PARIS – The war undertaken by Socialist President Francois Hollande is backed by a majority of French, who see the Muslim militant takeover of the former French colony as a much greater threat than Islamist insurgencies in other nations.

"I support the intervention – did you see all they did and they are blaming it all on Islam," said Karine Oukassine, waiting for a bus in Paris. "It is not Islam … behind the destruction. Other countries need to join France's efforts."

Nearly two-thirds of French people polled voiced support for the intervention in a survey done by the French Institute of Public Opinion, an international polling firm. This from a populace that opposed every U.S. intervention to oust Islamist militants elsewhere, including in Afghanistan and Somalia.

Some French policy analysts say the difference is that the French see Northern Africa as part of their sphere of influence and a greater threat because of its proximity. They also suggest that some economic interests may be in play.

"A domino effect could play out: Mali becoming a Taliban-style state would have evident repercussions for neighboring states," said Phillippe Hugon, a researcher at France's Institute for International and Strategic Relations. "There, France has interests in Niger, notably uranium."

On Wednesday about 800 French troops pressed northward in Mali toward territory held by Islamist jihadists aligned with al-Qaeda. The ground offensive followed five days of airstrikes against training camps and weapons depots. France said it will boost troop levels to 2,500 as other nations offered help with logistics, air transport and intelligence.

The Obama administration said it is providing intelligence-gathering assistance and may have American aircraft land in Mali, but it ruled out U.S. troops at this time. Germany said Wednesday that it will send two military aircraft to help with transport, and Italy said it is prepared to offer logistical support for air operations.

Islamist rebels backed by al-Qaeda terrorists have taken over the northern part of Mali, a desert country in West Africa south of Algeria in which they hope to impose an Islamic state. They are armed with heavy weaponry looted from Libya by Tuaregs, nomadic tribesmen who were paid by former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi to fight for his regime.

Both the Obama and George W. Bush administrations had sent U.S. Special Operations trainers to help Mali's government troops fight off the insurgency, but officers in Mali's military overthrew the government in March, saying the political leaders failed to fight the insurgency.

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, which is blamed for the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Libya that killed a U.S. ambassador, has increased its presence in Mali and throughout the Sahara Desert. It's helping militant groups Ansar al Din and the Movement for Unity in Mali and Jihad in West Africa to seize territory.

France launched its intervention last week in response to an SOS by Mali's president, Dioncounde Traore, as the jihadists gained ground moving south toward the country's capital, Bamako. A fighting force made up of troops from 15 West African nations that was supposed to come to Mali's aid has yet to arrive. President Hollande said the French would remain until the Africa force arrives, though that could take weeks.

Hollande had no choice, said Philippe Migaux, an al-Qaeda expert at Paris' Sciences Po university. "He had to react."

Paris has long maintained West Africa as a sphere of influence. Mali even has a Paris-backed currency, the Central African franc. That is why France is not fighting similar insurgencies in Nigeria or Somalia, said Migaux. And support for the war in France is deep.

Every French age group and every political belief – from communists to the far right – back the war, the French Institute of Public Opinion said.

Hollande has even stronger support among France's Malian community.

"Mr. Hollande is a great guy, he's a hero for us Malian immigrants here in France," said Douga Cisse, the president of a Malian community association in suburban Paris. "We haven't slept since these events began."

Although France once ruled Mali, very few – either in France or elsewhere – see this French intervention as an attempt to restore colonial influence in West Africa.

"If you look at the Malian and African public opinion, and the official positions of states starting with Algeria, Russia and China, you'll note that there hasn't been any condemnation" of the intervention, Hugon said.

However, some have expressed concern especially since France is the only major power with troops on the ground in Mali.

"Other countries – especially African and Arab countries – should be more involved and be more aware of the dangers of what is happening," said 40-year old Lamia Chraibi in Paris, who says she supports the intervention by France and hopes her country's troops stay to "finish the job."

Others argue that the cost is too high at an estimated $530,000 per day, given that France is mired in debt and recession.

"Hollande shouldn't have sent the troops to Mali when our economy is so bad," said Jose De Santos, a tobacconist in Paris' 17 Arrondissement. "We shouldn't be using the money for bombs but to help people here."

And some political players here warn that this war on terrorism has the potential to destabilize nearby countries and prompt yet more violence.

"These wars are a slippery slope," former French prime minister Dominique de Villepin wrote in France's Journal du Dimanche, a weekly newspaper. "Each creates the conditions for the next (one) … from Iraq to Libya and Syria, from Libya to Mali."

Security has been beefed up in French public spaces. Armed soldiers are patrolling some train stations. While analysts downplay the risks of a terrorist attack on French soil, rebels have threatened to bring the war home in recent days.

"France has attacked Islam," Abou Dardar, one of the top rebel leaders, told the French news agency AFP. "We will strike at the heart of France."